1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to gastric reduction surgery. More particularly, the invention relates to fasteners specifically adapted for use during endoscopic gastric reduction surgery.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Morbid obesity is a serious medical condition. In fact, morbid obesity has become highly pervasive in the United States, as well as other countries, and the trend appears to be heading in a negative direction. Complications associated with morbid obesity include hypertension, diabetes, coronary artery disease, stroke, congestive heart failure, multiple orthopedic problems and pulmonary insufficiency with markedly decreased life expectancy. With this in mind, and as those skilled in the art will certainly appreciate, the monetary and physical costs associated with morbid obesity are substantial. In fact, it is estimated the costs relating to obesity are in excess of 100 billion dollars in the United States alone.
A variety of surgical procedures have been developed to treat obesity. The most commonly performed procedure is Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB). This procedure is highly complex and is commonly utilized to treat people exhibiting morbid obesity. However, and with this in mind, around 100,000 procedures are performed annually in the United States alone. Other forms of bariatric surgery include Fobi pouch, bilio-pancreatic diversion, and gastroplastic or “stomach stapling”. In addition, implantable devices are known which limit the passage of food through the stomach and affect satiety. Another commonly employed gastric reduction procedure is vertical gastroplasty. This procedure is achieved by applying a series of horizontal sutures to create an incomplete horizontal line defining a small fundic pouch for restriction of food ingestion. This procedure is commonly performed laparoscopically and as such requires substantial preoperative, operative, postoperative resources.
Regardless of the procedure employed, many gastric reduction procedures require that a suture(s) be installed, creating a defined region through which nourishment may pass and restricting oral intake. The sutures used during these procedures are commonly secured to the stomach wall through the implementation of fasteners provided with openings through which the suture may be passed in securing the same within the stomach wall. By passing the suture through a series of properly positioned fasteners, one is able to create a pouch of predefined dimensions within the stomach of an individual. With this in mind, problems associated with gastric reduction surgery hinge heavily upon the issue of tissue apposition, grasping and control.
Since such procedures are relatively new and the associated fasteners have yet to be fully developed for the specific problems encountered during gastric reduction procedures, a need exists for new fasteners designed to optimally function during gastric reduction procedures. Such fasteners must provide for maintaining tissue apposition, fastening and controlling tissue in a manner which prevents erosion of sutures through the stomach wall and provide predictable depth of penetration through the stomach wall. The present invention provides such a variety of fasteners specifically adapted for gastric reduction procedures through tissue apposition.